1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to an electronic device such as a printer that can apply various processes, such as cancelling printing or delaying printing, to print data input thereto in response to specific operations performed on the printer after the print data has been input, and to a control method for the electronic device.
2. Description of Related Art
Printers that have a cancel printing button positioned on an operating panel on the printer and can cancel printing print data that has already been received when the cancel printing button is operated after the print data has been received are known from the literature. For example, when the user operates a cancel button positioned on the operating panel while printing is in progress, the printing device taught in Japanese Unexamined Patent Appl. Pub. JP-A-2006-326841 executes a switch interrupt process corresponding to this operation and interrupts printing.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Appl. Pub. JP-A-2000-246989 teaches an image forming device that reduces the number of operating panels and control buttons located on the printer by using an impact sensor to detect shock and impact applied to any part of the printer housing and execute processes, such as an unconditional paper discharge process, head recovery process, and ink replacement process based on the output from the detector. A configuration command from a host device stores the device states in which impact should be detected and the impact patterns to be detected correlated to the content of the process to be executed when a particular impact pattern is detected in the image forming device. After being configured, the image forming device automatically detects impact according to the device state without requiring additional command input from the host device.
Positioning operating buttons such as a cancel printing button on the printer as described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Appl. Pub. JP-A-2006-326841 greatly increases the limitations on the printer installation, such as preventing placing anything above the operating buttons. Business printers such as receipt printers, for example, are commonly placed on a shelf underneath a counter in order to not take up counter space, and it may not be able to operate the buttons in such situations. In the case of a portable receipt printer that is typically used worn on the user's belt clip, it is preferable to be able to operate the buttons by intuitive touch without looking, but this may inhibit smooth operation because it can be difficult to find the correct button to operate. In addition, when there are multiple buttons to operate, determining the correct button by touch can be difficult, and operating errors can occur.
With a configuration that executes particular processes in response to the user tapping on the device housing as taught in Japanese Unexamined Patent Appl. Pub. JP-A-2000-246989, the device can be operated intuitively and operating buttons can be removed from the housing. However, with the image forming device taught in JP-A-2000-246989, the processes triggered by particular combinations tapping patterns and device states in which impact is detected must be preprogrammed into the device, and configuration can be troublesome. Furthermore, after the printer is configured for impact detection, the operation triggered by impact is always executed when the set device state is active. As a result, it is not possible to change on a per job basis whether or not the process triggered by impact detection executes, and it is not possible to change the content of the process executed in response to impact detection job by job.